Former Thin Lizzy guitarist Gary Moore was five times drink drive limit when he died

Former Thin Lizzy guitarist Gary Moore died after drinking enough alcohol to
put himself nearly five times over the drink-drive limit, tests have shown.

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Photo: Fotex / Rex Features

12:06PM GMT 27 Feb 2012

The musician suffered a heart attack brought on by the massive amount of booze he knocked back at the start of a sunshine holiday, the studies showed.

He had 380mg of alcohol per decilitre of blood in his system, more than 30mg the amount associated with fatalities and just short of the 416mg Amy Winehouse had in her body when she died surrounded by three empty vodka bottles.

The legal limit for driving in the UK is 80mg of alcohol per decilitre of blood.

In most European countries including Spain where drink-drink limits are lower, he would have been nearly eight times over the permitted amount to drive.

The tests also revealed father-of-three Moore, found dead in bed at a luxury Costa del Sol hotel last February, had abused alcohol for years.

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Former Thin Lizzy guitarist Moore died at the Kempinski Resort Hotel in Estepona hours after starting a six-day holiday with his new partner.

Hours earlier the pair were seen washing down a snack at the hotel bar with champagne and brandy.

His girlfriend raised the alarm around 4am on February 6 last year.

An initial post-mortem revealed he had died of a heart attack. Chemical and toxicology studies were carried out at a lab in Seville along with an examination of the musician's cells and tissue samples.

Police confirmed at the time the 58-year-old rocker died they were not treating it as suspicious.

An investigating magistrate who opened a standard inquiry to determine the exact cause of death is now expected to close the probe and pave the way for an inquest in the UK where Moore was living.

The acclaimed Belfast-born musician, rated as one of the finest guitarists of his generation, was best known for his time in Thin Lizzy.

He played on their chart hits Waiting For An Alibi and Do Anything You Want To. He also teamed up with Thin Lizzy frontman and fellow Irishman Phil Lynott for the top ten solo hits Parisienne Walkways and Out In The Fields.

Lynott died in 1986 after battling drink and drug problems.

In recent years Gary Moore forged a new career as a blues musician, releasing critically-acclaimed albums and performing with legends BB King and Bob Dylan. Bob Geldof described him after his death as "one of the greatest blues players of all time."

Thin Lizzy founding member Brian Downey said at the time: "He will always be in my thoughts and prayers."